I Heart oDesk
I’m a freelancer and I absolutely love freeware and web sites that offer great service at no cost to the user! I enjoy trying out different sites and freeware since I’m online pretty much all the time. Having completed a programming course myself, I really appreciate the web developers/designers and software developers/programmers who put in all their time, money and resources so that they can deliver cool apps and web sites for the benefit of internet addicts/download junkies ordinary users like me. Let me start, of course, with the site that enabled me to do freelance work for free.
At the time of this writing, I have been a freelancer at oDesk for 8 months. I do admin support work such as data entry, web research, transcription, etc. Since I started in January, I have worked on 19 projects, have received several job offers some of which I have had to turn down, and currently have 5 clients. Something I never thought would even be possible! :-O As of this date, I have a feedback score of 4.84 and have already logged 800 hours.
I guess I’m one of the few “lucky” ones who started working on a project only a few days since I set up an account at oDesk. I also have accounts in other freelance sites but it’s only at oDesk where I am able to find projects that I enjoy doing and I have also been very fortunate to have had buyers that are great to work with—who are very considerate, provide clear instructions at the outset, provide guidance if and when necessary, and are generous with praise, great feedback and even unexpected bonuses! Praying before applying works miracles, I tell you. 
The site is fairly easy to use.. I mean, I was able to create my profile, take a few tests and apply for jobs in a day or two. Though, I must admit, the interface could still use some improvement to help newby freelancers navigate the system with ease but they are getting much better with time. The site is very different from when I first applied for a job. The search feature and help files have also undergone great improvement and users can be both a provider and a buyer at the same time! So your company can hire workers through oDesk and you can find prospective clients through the site as well. (And that’s what I did! Just today, I hired someone to help me with my new blog, Cheaper Options.)
One of the things that makes oDesk unique is its guaranteed hourly pay with the aid of the one-of-a-kind oDesk Team client software which allows providers (freelancers) to track the number of hours worked for hourly projects and enables buyers (clients) to monitor their provider’s progress through the screen shots that the software takes at regular intervals. While some view this as a rather intrusive spycam, almost Big-Brother-like app, I think it’s a pretty cool tool that has saved me a lot of time and has assured my buyers that all of the hours they paid me have been worth it. The only thing I dislike about it is that I cannot multitask while I’m logged on oDesk Team software. I also dislike the fact that their site is usually down Thursday mornings (here in Manila), which means you cannot log hours properly using oDesk Team. Not a good prospect if you have a deadline that day.
Also, I was really turned off by the rather cumbersome authorization procedure imposed by MoneyBookers, an online fund transfer service based in the UK with which you can receive payments from oDesk. After going through their initial round of identity verification and using their service for some time, they required me to ask my bank for a statement containing specific info, something that our local banks don’t normally issue. They refused to release my hard-earned cash until I complied with their request. I understand that there are Anti-Money Laundering laws in place in the UK but there really is no need, I believe, to withhold relatively small amounts of cash from those who are trying to earn an honest living. If our local banks started doing that to their customers, they would soon be out of business and the Philippine economy would go awry! Thankfully, other options for oDesk payment such as the Payoneer debit card are available.
Another issue I have with oDesk is their lack of minimum bids or rates and I’ve read from other bloggers that this is the main reason why they stay away from the site. Most of the projects posted, they say, are just so terribly underpaid. Sadly, I would have to agree. (Though I guess this is a positive thing for buyers who are looking for a freelance site where they can outsource projects to freelancers from all over the world at incredibly low prices!) Some buyers pay only a dollar per well-written article, and even cheaper rates for data entry and other similar jobs.
From a buyer’s standpoint, aside from being able to monitor your workers and paying only for actual hours worked, your providers are tested on the particular skills that they claim to have. In fact, there is a limit to the number of projects that we can bid on if we haven’t taken and passed at least 5 of these tests. Please note, however, that the scores that you see on our profiles are our percentile ranking, and not percentage scores. A recent development, oDesk now requires new users, or those who have not logged any hours, to pass the oDesk Readiness Test (ORT) prior to being given permission to apply for jobs. It is an “open book” test which means they can easily refer to the answers in the oDesk site itself. It is basically a tutorial for new users to make sure that they are familiar with the system and avoid misunderstandings with buyers before they can apply for jobs.
If a candidate/provider hasn’t taken a specific test, you can request them to do so before hiring them while conducting the interview and you can do these interviews via Skype, Yahoo, or whatever instant messaging software you already have installed. Aside from our resumes, list of skills, oDesk work history (if any) and test scores, many of the candidate profiles you will see below our cover letters, will include samples of our previous work either through oDesk or from a previous job. The oDesk search box now has a “Have a portfolio” check box that you can click on when you search for providers so this helps narrow down your search to providers who have work samples posted. Buyers find this very helpful esp when considering an oDesk newby for a job. I’ve seen projects where buyers actually look for providers who have worked in a real office environment as opposed to those who immediately started working online and so this feature comes in really handy.
One recent development that some buyers find inconvenient though is the stricter credit card verification procedure. This involves providing your credit card info to oDesk after setting up your profile and perhaps posting a job. oDesk will deduct 2 amounts from your card. If you use online banking, the procedure is pretty fast. You just go online and see what the 2 amounts are, click on Verify Now on your Team Admin panel at the oDesksite, enter the 2 amounts in any order and wallah, your card is verified and the job(s) you posted is considered fully active. One other option would be to request your bank to fax you a statement if possible so that you can have your card verified sooner.
But despite this, slowly but surely, the oDesk team is continuing to adapt changes to make oDesk an even better platform for buyers and providers alike and someone was right in saying that the site can be quite addictive. During my spare time, I usually hang out at the forum with fellow Pinoy (Filipino) providers to try to help out new users. I’m a certified oDesk junkie so… what more can I say? I love this site! I really hope it will continue to grow and outlast and outrank all the other freelance sites in the near future. ;D THANK YOU, oDesk, for giving me a chance to find interested buyers from all over the world.
So to other Pinoy freelancers out there who want to work from home, give oDesk a try today! Or if you’re a potential buyer looking for a fast, efficient, and reliable provider for your admin support team, please do
